1 888. 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



273 



tie sand Cherry. All cultivated trees are not 

 equally liable to l)e iittacked. I liave never 

 seen the varieties of Uie Ox Heart or l<;nslisli 

 Cherry affected by it, but tlie varieties of tlie 

 sour Cherry are especially liable to its 

 attacks. A tlirifty, heaUliy tree is less lia- 

 ble to attack than a sickly neglected one. 



The dise:xse first shows itself in the form of a 

 swelling in the branch. Thi^ enlart?cmoMt Is 

 limited to the sap wood, the heart wood remain- 

 ing iinatfect^N]. The brancli is sometimes cui-\'ed 

 or contorted by the knot. Some have alKrmeil 

 that there are two tlistiuet kincis of l)liu-k knot. 

 Rut it is a mistake. The different appearances 

 are due to the different stages of devolopraent, 

 or to differences in the ho.st plant. 



Cause of Black Knot, llecent in\estiKatioiis 

 and microscopical c.xaminations havesliowu that 

 fungus alone is the cause of the mischief. Its 

 spores lodge upon the liranches ttf the tree, and 

 under favorable conditions of heat and moisture 

 germinate, and their germinal threads, called 

 mycelium, penetrate the tissues of the sapwcjod, 

 and produce a kind of irritation which results 

 in an enlargement of the branch and the devel- 

 opment of the successive stages of the fungus, 

 as already described. Insects sometimes found 

 in the black knot do not cause the knots, but 

 seek them as a fit place for depositing its eggs 

 and rearing its young. 



Propagation. As to mode of propagation 

 the microscopes revc^al that the olive-green mold 

 which first appears bears a crop of fungus seeds 

 or spores. After the summer spores have been 

 produced, minute black spheres make their ap- 

 pearance. In autumn they are filled with a mass 

 of cellular matter, intermingled with a few im- 

 mature elongated membranous sacks, but no 

 spores. In winter, or in early spring, we fine 

 numerous well-developsd sacks, each of which 

 contains eight spores, usually arranged like 

 beans. These are the winter spores, ready with 

 the opening of the season, to be scattered abroad 

 by the winds. They may be wafted long distances. 

 The fungus has also another method of propa- 

 gating itself. The mycelium, or filaments in the 

 knot may e.xtend from it in either direction, so 

 long as the branch is alive, and thus new knots 

 are produced by it each season. Commonly, the 

 disease, if left to itself, continues to spread in 

 the branches until the life of a tree is destroyed. 

 Bemedy, Evidently the most natural and ef- 

 fective remedy is simply to cut off the excres- 

 cences and as the mycelium is deep-seated the 

 cut should extend three or four inches below the 

 knot. Sometimes a knot may occupy but one 

 side of a large branch, which it may be desiralile 

 to save. In such case shave off the knot, taking 

 with it the sun-ounding sap wood, for the pur- 

 pose of getting all the mycelium possible. [Then 

 paint the wound with clear turpentine fir.st and in 

 the case of very large wounds, with paint, varnish 

 or grafting wax, as a protection from exposure 

 to the atmosphere.— Ed.] When a tree is en- 

 tirely surrounded by a black knot below the 

 liranches, it may as well be taken out at once. 

 When the knots have been cut off, burn them 

 immediately. The knots should be removed as 

 soon as possible after they make their appear- 

 ance, not giving them time to perfect a crop 

 of spores. Except per- 

 haps if a tree is first 

 seen to be affected when 

 in full leaf, so that the 

 removal would cause 

 serious in.iury to the 

 tree, it might be better 

 to wait till the leaves 

 have fallen. In this way 

 the development of the 

 crop of winter spores 

 will be prevented, and 

 so much will be accom- 

 plished in pre\enting 



„, ,. „ „ r the spread of the dis- 



Pkinling Smalt or Large ' „„ 



Sndlings. ease. Each grower 



should attend to this business faithfully and 

 thoroughly. Let nn hlaclt Itnots remain on the 

 Ircex duriiw the winter. In most localities the 

 danger of infection from wild trees has been 

 reduced to almost a minimum iiy the thorough 

 clearing up of the country. The danger of 

 infection is also greatly dimintehcd by gi\ing 

 good cultivation and sufKcient nourishment to 

 the tree. It is evident then that black knot is 

 no insurmountable obstacle, merely making 

 necessary some extra care and attenticai, which 

 will be abunchuitly rewarded by good crops 

 of Plums, and Cherries in due time. 



CONDENSED CLEANINGS. 



Forest Trees from Seeds. We sowallour trei' 

 seeds in Hi>rnig, and us the f<>llowlng rulrs are 

 based onourownexpericntre, they appl.\' to spring 

 sowing:— White Ash st'cds ripi-n in early <)i;tober, 

 and fall aft<*r the first severe frost. They should 

 be mixed with moist wind and not allowed to be- 

 come dry before sowing. This .siune treatment 

 should be followed with all the nati\'e Ash fam- 

 ily, with one exception, viz, the (Jreen Ash, 

 whlt^h hangs on longer, and will gi-rnnnale if 

 siiwn ilry: all others will remain dormant until 

 the next sea.son if sown dry. Hard Maple seeds 

 ripen early in Octol>er, anil reiinire the siime 

 trcatnient as the Wlut<_' Ash. Soft Mapht schhIs 

 ripen in spring iminediately before, or about the 

 time that Apple trees Ijcgin to blossom. They 

 should be sown within a few days after having 

 been gathered. Elm seeds ripen in spring, and 

 they reiiuire the same treatment lu* those of the 

 Soft Maple. IJlack Walinits and all nut.s with a 

 pulpy covering may be spread in thin layers, say 

 si.v inches deep, and covered with sods and litt<'r 

 to prevent them dying during the winter, in 

 which case the pulpy covering will be easily dis- 

 posed of in Sluing. Other Nuts and .Vcorns, to- 

 gether with seeds of the Tulip Tree and Bass- 

 wootl, are more safely treateii as recommended 

 fin' Ash and Hard Maple seeds. Catalpa and 

 Ailanthus seeds are kept dry diu'ing winter and 

 sown rather late in spring. Birch and Alder 

 seeds are kept dry and sown dry early in spring. 

 Locust seeds and all those of that family arc kept 

 dry through the winter and soaked in hot water 

 immediately before sowing. All seeds with a 

 fleshy covering, such as Apple, Cherry, Mountain 

 Ash, Cucumber Tree, Buffalo Berry, Ked Cedar, 

 and Holly, are washed free from the p\Up. mixed 

 with sand, and sown in spring. We make an ex- 

 ception generally with the Red Cedar and the 

 Holly, as they never germinate e\'Cnly in the 

 spiing; therefore, we bur.v them in a r(tt heai) 

 during two winters and one summer, ami sow 

 the following spring. Poplar and WiUow seeds 

 are very fine and delicate and require skill, close 

 attention, and continual moisture during the 

 early part of the season. Therefore it is cheaper 

 and surer to raise them from clipiangs than 

 from seeds. All seeds mixed with sand must be 

 placed so that water will not stand around them. 

 Frost will not injure them, unless in position 

 where they will freeze dry. A cool shed where 

 they are protected from sun and wind will be a 

 proper place.— R. Douglas, in Garden and Forest. 



A New Cabbage— The Shantung (Brassica 

 chlnensis, L.) Mr. George Hughes, late t'ora- 

 missioner of Customs at Chefoo, China, offered 

 the Royal Gardens seeds of this Cabbage, and 

 stated: " I havejust received from Chefoo, North 

 China, a small packet of Shantung Cabbage seed. 

 It grows in the north of China, is Lettuce-shaped, 

 and weighs from five to eight pounds. When 

 boiled it is nearly as good as Seakale; eaten raw, 

 in a salad, it is of so delicate a flavor that I know 

 of no vegetable in England to approach it. It is 

 an autumn Cabbage, should be planted about IS 

 inches apart, thrives best with moisture, and in 

 Shantung is well watered every day: there the 

 seed is sown in June. When nearly full grown 

 it should Ije tied round, so as to give it a good 

 wliite heart. If it can be acclimatized in this 

 country it will be a great addition to our vege- 

 tables." The seeds received at Kew, being few 

 in number, were carefully cultivated. They 

 were sown in a heated pit on May 3. and in about 

 a fortnight all had germinated. They were sown 

 in a heated pit on Ma.\' :S, and in about a fortnight 

 all had germinated. They were pricked off into 

 boxes, and when large enough transferred to 

 pots. They were kept in a cold frame until the 

 beginning of June, when they were planted out 

 in lieds of rich soil about IH inches apart in the 

 rows, and the same distance apart from row to 

 row. About the middle of July the plants were 

 tied up in the same way as Cos Lettuce, ami when 

 well filled and blanched were cut for use. They 

 were pronounced to be excellent. The .seed 

 ripened only sparingly, probably owing to the 

 dry weather of last summer. It is possilile that 

 this Chinese Cabbage may prove a usef uladilition 

 to English gardens. -Gardener's Chronicle. 



Planting Small or Large Seedlings. Theri^ is 

 a lielief among tree planters that tiy securing 

 and planting a seedling from two to three feet 

 high they will olilain a larger percentage of 

 growth and a gain of a year's time on the sizi' of 

 their tree. This is a rciusonablc presumption, 

 yet we beg leave to present another siile of the 

 question: our Western winds. The above illus- 



tration shows three siH'dllngs, No. I being a 30 

 inch tre(% strong, stocky and well rooted. The 

 same tree, atNo. :i, has Just been struck by a gale, 

 and in its stiff, luibending way is pressing the 

 soil away from its l)ase, and at the same time 

 opening a ca\'ity (b)wn along the root on the 

 wimiwafd side, into whitrli the dr.v top soil is 

 sifting. The wind dies down and the elastic 

 root straight ens the tree up into an erect position, 

 and dry soil falls in at the other side. This is 



A Portable Putting Bench. 



<)ft<in repeated and the dry air and soil at length 

 kill the tree. The seedling shown at No. 3 is 

 I~ inches above the collar wh(;re the root and 

 trunk meet. It is also being lient by the wind, 

 but its large proportion of root allows it to bend 

 nearly to the ground witho\it dlstiu'bing the 

 roots, luid no soil gets d<twn among them, thus 

 iTonducing to jtermaneiU root growth: and any 

 condition such as above iilustrateii to be care- 

 fully avoided. With small numbers, large trees 

 can be carefully braced; but in setting trees by 

 the thousand of course this is impracticable. — 

 Western Tree Plant^n*. 



How to Grow Kale. This vegetable belongs 

 to the Calibage farjiily. though, as a class, they 

 form neither heads or eatable flowei-s. They are 

 very hardy and are propagated from the seeds, 

 which resemble the seecl of Cabbage. The seed 

 is sown at the same time as the seeds of Cabbage 

 or <_'aiditIower, and in the same way. Early 

 plants may be started in a hot-l»ed. In trans- 

 planting, treat the plants like yoinig Cabbages. 

 While freezing d(a;s them no harm, they are gen- 

 erally harvested in the fall before the closing up 

 of the ground. If reset in the following spring, 

 they will f lu-nish an abundance of tendersprouts 

 which, when cooked, some think are l)etter in 

 flavor than Cabbage. In preparing, selecting 

 and manuring the ground, pri)ceed precisely as 

 with Cabbage. It is subject to the same insect 

 enemies, and to exterminate they are to be 

 treated in the same way as when they attack the 

 latter.— Western Rural. 



Potting Bench. The great convenience of a 

 portable potting bench when lifting plants from 

 oiien groiuid does not seem to be thoriuighly 

 imderstood by many florists. We give an illus- 

 tration of a convenient iKMich which can be taken 

 into the plat where idants are being lifted. By 

 its use plants may be pottx'd right on the spot, 

 and the chances of the root being longexpo.sed 

 to the air, greatly diminished. It is very often 

 the case where plants are lifted in the 

 field and carried to the houses before being 

 potted, that the vitality of the plant is greatly 

 reduced by drying of the roots, which by this 

 means can be avoided, ('areful attention to 

 these little points go far towards making the 

 tiest success in plant growing.— .\inerican Florist. 



Hoosac Thornless Blackberry Notwithstand- 

 ing the severe cold which killed the fruit buds 

 on all Peach trees, not a cane of this berry wsis 

 injured, though no protection was afforded them. 

 During the latter part of last August a prodigious 

 crop was harvested andsold in the Lowell market 

 for as high a price as tlie others br<juglit. No 

 blood was drawn orgarments rent in picking the 

 fruit. Cultivated in fairly well dressed and moist 

 soil, the berry is of mediiun size, and for fine 

 lla\-or nuist be quite ripe, when they are as goo<l 

 as the best.— N. K. Hf>mestead. 



Wealth in Onions. The great Onion-producing 

 belt of this state at present is a tract of seven 

 hundred or eight hundred acres, know as the 

 Chester meadows. This tract lies on either side 

 of the Erie Railway track, lielwecn Grejcourt 

 and Chester. When the railroad was built 

 through that part of Orange county, the tract 

 was a swampy waste, into which thousands of 

 tons of earth had to be duinpeil, and two miles 

 of piling <lriven. bcftire a foundation for the 

 road-hed could be made. It was not believed 

 that it could ever lie utilized in any way, and the 

 paymentof tjixes on it was considered as a waste 

 (d money. About thirty yeai's ago a farmer 

 named Conklin, who owntnl a large portion of 

 the tract, drained a spot in one corner of it and 

 was rewarded with a plot of the richest kind of 

 soil. By way of experiment, he seeded it to 



